Expert Opinions & Stories

Several Asia-Pacific countries are ageing fast. This transition is neither unique nor limited to the region - it is a global megatrend. However, this time it is different. Why? Because ageing…

Development cooperation is no longer what it used to be, even a decade ago. Budgets of traditional donors are coming under more and more strain, geopolitical changes are increasingly influencing how…

Following persistent and determined efforts, Africa has achieved a breakthrough in advancing the establishment of an African credit rating agency (ACRA), with the proposed launch scheduled for…

When students from poor families in developing countries are offered places at prestigious universities, they are often faced with a tough choice. One option is to accept the offer and create more…

The Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific 2023 highlighted that 19 countries in the region are facing a high risk of debt distress.[1] While the public debt-to-GDP ratio is the most…

More and more developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region are struggling under mounting public debt, making it difficult for them to invest in sustainable development.

External debt servicing…

Stakeholder engagement: The case for a more strategic approach

After the isolating and unkind years of the COVID-19 pandemic, which shrank our networks and reduced social interactions, it was…

The unprecedented fiscal firepower used to protect the vulnerable from the harsh socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting economic contraction have pushed the average…

The emergence of middle-income developing countries willing to share their knowledge, expertise and resources through their own assistance programs offers new opportunities for partnerships and…

After two years of human devastation, the world is learning to live with COVID-19 while trying to balance the protection of public health and livelihoods.

For countries in Asia and the Pacific,…

The risk of public debt distress is considerably high in almost all Pacific small island developing States (PSIDS). The debt levels in most PSIDS were on a rising trajectory since early 2010s and are…

The Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) are among the most vulnerable countries in the world to the impacts of climate change. The World Risk Index 2021 ranks several Pacific Island…

Even as Asia and the Pacific continues to be the fastest growing region in the world, economic growth has been slowing since the 2008 global financial crisis. Add the COVID-19 pandemic to the mix,…

The world is emerging from the biggest social and economic shock in living memory, but it will be a long time before the deep scars of the COVID-19 pandemic on human well-being fully heal.

In the…

The COVID-19 pandemic is imposing economic and broader development challenges as never before. Job losses, reduced income and lack of access to social protection will push millions back into extreme…

Extraordinary times calls for extraordinary measures. The COVID-19 pandemic has required countries to deploy large spending for emergency health response and relief measures for households and firms…

The United Nations has tasked the Canadian Institutes of Health Research Institute of Population and Public Health (CIHR-IPPH) to lead the research roadmap to identify priorities that will support an…

As the socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the length and breadth of Asia and the Pacific, finance ministries are continuing their relentless efforts to inject trillions of…

“We have to learn from COVID… We can’t wish away systemic risk. It’s much much cheaper, much more effective to invest upfront in order to avoid disaster and so it is with climate change – a crisis…

New dashboard to track SDG investments

Achieving a goal requires dedicating adequate resources. ESCAP’s SDG Progress Assessment shows that countries in Asia and the Pacific are not on track to…